xiv, 382 pages : 21 cm

"Peter M.F. Sichel, a fourth-generation wine merchant, found the path he was destined to walk interrupted by the Nazis while growing up as an enemy alien at the outbreak of World War II. When he was released, he hid in the Pyrenees before reaching the United States in 1941. After joining the Army, he served with the U.S. Office of Strategic Services, sending spies into Germany, before becoming a senior official with the Central Intelligence Agency, where he served in key positions in Berlin, Hong Kong, and Washington. In this memoir -- which needed to be cleared by the CIA -- he describes how the Nazis took over Germany, the odd attitude of German Jews to being Jewish, the fault lines in the U.S. intelligence during the Cold War, and the life lessons he learned in the wine business

Includes bibliographical references (pages 379-382)

Part 1: Youth, 1922-41. My family roots -- Earliest memories -- My parents -- My sister Ruth -- My extended family -- My German education -- History of Germany after World War I -- A traumatic end to a childhood friendship -- Growing up Jewish in Germany -- My English school years -- Stowe: a separate world -- What it means to be a refugee -- A miraculous reunion with Mama -- Part 2: My intelligence career -- Espionage 101: confidential funds -- Infiltration behind enemy lines -- Occupied Berlin: a ghastly sight -- Investigating Soviet nuclear capabilities -- The nitty-gritty of espionage -- The Berlin blockade and the Korean War: a serious turn of events -- Washington, 1952-56 -- Three notable incidents -- Asia-bound -- An informed critique -- Part 3: Being a wine merchant, wine grower, and wine personality -- Back in the wine trade -- The quirky wine business -- My first important decisions as US Director -- Becoming a wine personality -- The rise and fall of Blue Nun: a singular story -- Becoming a Bordeaux vintner -- The wine community -- Some advice on wine -- A look back

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